Spring crops on track after years of drought, flooding

By ADAM RUSSELL Texas A&M AgriLife Communications

Published 5:20 am, Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Image 1of/1

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 1

Kay Ledbetter/Texas A&M AgriLife Communications The Texas Panhandle received some much needed moisture in the form of snow on Feb. 23, which greatly benefited winter wheat fields, including this one near Amarillo. less

Kay Ledbetter/Texas A&M AgriLife Communications The Texas Panhandle received some much needed moisture in the form of snow on Feb. 23, which greatly benefited winter wheat fields, including this one near ... more

Spring crops on track after years of drought, flooding

1 / 1

Back to Gallery

COLLEGE STATION - Producers around the state are finding conditions more favorable for planting early crops compared to last year, according to Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service reports.

Dr. Ronnie Schnell, AgriLife Extension agronomist in College Station, said corn and sorghum producers are on or a little ahead of schedule with plantings as soil conditions appear to be favorable because of winter moisture and timely spring rains. Fields in the Brazos Valley are in much better condition than last year, when torrential rains delayed plantings for months in some cases.

Schnell said some farmers started early to avoid possible delays. He said some corn is already emerging in the region.

“There was good winter moisture and a dry out that gave them the ability to get into their fields to plant before these recent rains,” he said. “I don’t think everyone was finished but there was a lot of activity and I think a lot of the fields are planted.”

Dr. Gaylon Morgan, AgriLife Extension agronomist in College Station, said cotton fields in the Rio Grande Valley were 80 percent planted and overall there have been few delays up to this point. Morgan said mild winter conditions spurred farmers to plant rather than risk rain delays.

“Most producers in the (Rio Grande) Valley planted earlier than usual because they were gun-shy after what happened last year when it was wet and stayed wet,” he said. “They wanted to get it in.”

Morgan said moisture levels were looking good around the state and that 2016 has been a return to normal so far — compared to prior years of drought and flood. He said soil in some areas would be full of moisture 2-4 feet deep, which would be beneficial to rooting plants between rains.

The rains were helpful to many areas and crops, but the precipitation and subsequent humidity is causing problems for wheat fields around the state, said Dr. Clark Neely, AgriLife Extension specialist in College Station. Wheat rust has been reported around the state, and recent rains and overall humidity levels could provide ideal conditions for the disease.

“There’s a lot of rust being reported and rain only helps facilitate the disease’s development,” he said. “The reports we’ve seen in January and February are indicative of a bad rust year.”

Warmer- than-usual temperatures put wheat two weeks ahead of schedule and have producers concerned about possible freezes that could damage fields. There were 5.3 million acres of wheat compared to 6 million acres planted last year, a 12 percent decrease.

Despite concerns, Neely said overall the wheat crop is in good shape. Most of the state’s production is concentrated in the Rolling Plains and High Plains areas, which benefitted from the recent rains, he said.

“All these rains that might have hurt us helped them,” he said.

AgriLife Extension district reporters compiled the following summaries:

SOUTH PLAINS: In Cochran County, soil continued to dry out due to lack of moisture. Pasture and rangeland needed rain as producers continued to prepare for spring planting. Winter wheat would benefit from rain but continued to mature. Floyd County producers received three-quarters of an inch of rain, which helped winter wheat and provided good moisture to start planting next month. Wheat looked very good. Light rainfall was received in portions of Garza County, with amounts ranging from a quarter inch to half an inch. Producers continued to prepare land for cotton planting in the coming months. Most ranges and pastures were in fair to good condition, as warm season grasses were beginning to come out and beginning to grow in low-lying areas. Cattle concentrated on those areas and followed new growth. Cattle were in mostly fair to good condition with little-to-no supplemental feeding at this time. Rainfall was needed in most areas to fill the topsoil profile as subsoil moisture in pastures remained good. Lubbock County received needed rainfall this week, but it was spotty. Amounts ranged from a few hundredths of an inch to more than 1 inch. Land preparation continued, including application of fertilizer and herbicides and listing rows. Spot checks of several wheat fields indicated growth nearing the jointing stage. Scurry County producers received trace amounts of rain but more rain was needed. There was no precipitation reported in Yoakum County. Irrigated fields of winter wheat and oats continued to look good. Calm winds allowed grape growers to spray.

PANHANDLE: Temperatures were warm, dry and windy for most of the week. Some moisture was received. A good rain was still needed throughout the region. Collingsworth County received rain early in the week. Cooler temperatures and cloudy skies provided some good moisture. Wheat and pastureland was greening up due to heavy morning dew and high humidity. Spring round-up was beginning. Deaf Smith County producers continued field preparations for the coming planting season. Compost and fertilizer trucks were running as quickly as possible in preparation for planting season. The winter wheat crop was holding on and many producers started pivot irrigation on their wheat crops. Dryland crops were suffering from lack of moisture. The wheat crop was growing fast with much of the wheat breaking dormancy and needing moisture to continue its growth. Stocker cattle were still running on wheat pasture with more being added to graze the pastures out. Scattered showers were received across Wheeler County. Some areas received up to half an inch but more was needed for wheat. Pastures began to green up. Weeping lovegrass was growing and producers began to fertilize. Cattle were in good condition. Range and pastures was rated mostly fair to good.